Would you like to spy with my beautiful balloon?

You're not wrong, but your information is out of date. In the early 00s, there was a massive amount of concern when tech companies (like Google) started putting up their own satellites to do Earth imaging projects. There was even some weirdness where a company was putting up an imaging satellite for a company that later got by Google that was riding on the same rocket as a spysat, and the imaging capabilities for the civvie sat were on par with the spysat.

Satellite observation is fine for a lot of things, and being able to read things like license plates from space is handy and all but they can often take a lot of image processing to be useful. But using observation platforms that are lower (be they balloons or spyplanes) can yield more information than a satellite image. For example, they can give you an idea of what the ground looks like around an object. Handy to see things like fresh footprints around something, if you're curious about if something is being occupied and there's no obvious external signs, like lights or people going in and out of the place.

The weather balloon's swamp gas though, right?

https://twitter.com/NavalInstitute/status/1621310952489590785?s=20&t=TOVyAkNGbiGpBZKA8IKaMg

To check on what, their moose cavalry or their strategic maple syrup reserves?

Naruto kid spotted

It's not so weird when you consider this balloon has been in flight for almost 2,000 years. In fact, it's quite impressive on China's part.

Canucks don't fuck around when it comes to syrup.

If you're caught with this in Canada you could face some serious jail time.

Oooh, now I'm seeing a Canadian reboot of Breaking Bad...

If you're caught with this anywhere in the world, I'll punch you in the face.

Took him long enough.

Self-Driving Truck Start-Up Faces Espionage Investigation Over China Connection

Lot easier to get detailed secrets from using agents on the ground in some cases.

Their canoe navy, duh.

BREAKING: U.S. military has popped the balloon over the North Carolina coast.

EVEN MORE BREAKING NEWS: The Balloon was filled with the Captain Tripps variant of COVID-19.

Thanks, China!

Linkage https://twitter.com/sethcotlar/status/1621959037188472832?s=46&t=Lq6nXUFUyz_zJrLL5vffdg

They'd have shot that balloon down months ago if Joe Brandon wasn't so busy raising the price of eggs and making my gas stove gender neutral

And making M&Ms do Critical Race Theories with drag queens who eat Impossible burgers!

Mission accomplished.

Not understanding the criticism of President Biden on this issue.

A lot of armchair quarterbacks are saying the balloon should have been shot down as soon as officials realized what it was.

I think the president's (and, by extension, the military's) response was measured and appropriate.

I also wonder what China's endgame was here. Seems like an awfully stupid move.

The US military really needs to contact Ninja Kiwi as they have already developed a series of anti balloon defenses through their anti-bloon monkey army.

Since it is a white balloon you have to be wary of the two smaller fast moving pink balloons that would come from it. Shooting it down with the monkey ace was a good idea, but with a white balloon we could have developed a cheaper and faster solution through a upgraded dart monkey or sniper monkey.

Since China is really developed in attack balloon technology and probably has access to ZOMG, MOABs, and BFB's we really need to deploy more towers along the path before they unleash these terrors. God forbid they launch a lich balloon with our present over buffed military we are doomed.

I could go for hours on the BTD humor if you like.

Scheduled flight in September amirite

Thanks Obama!

Well those raging communists over at Forbes say that this isn't the first time Chinese balloons have overflown the US.


Yes, Chinese Spy Balloons Flew Over The U.S. When President Trump Was In Office Too

To be fair, the CCP was in quite a bad condition before Xi took over in 2012 and straightened it out. Collapse was not an implausible prediction then.

Chinese media reacting to the popped balloon near Carolina:

How dare those yankee scum interfere with harmless civilian aircraft!